Margaret Schweinhaut

Margaret "Peg" Schweinhaut (1903 - 1997) was a longtime Maryland state senator known for her advocacy on behalf of the elderly. She founded the state's Commission on Aging and chaired it for 24 years. She was inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame in 1992.

Early life and education

She was born in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., in 1903. She attended D.C. public schools before earning degrees at George Washington University and the National University School of Law.

Political career

Before running for elected office, Schweinhaut was active in school and community affairs. She campaigned for Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940. She also championed environmental causes and gun control, and opposed capital punishment and abortion.

She chaired the State Commission on Aging from 1959 to 1983 and the Executive Nominations Committee from 1971 to 1983. She served on the Legislative Council (now the Legislative Policy Committee) from 1971 to 1983 and from 1986 to 1990. She was a member of the Judicial Proceedings Committee. She also served on the Governor's Commission on Condominiums, Cooperatives and Homeowners Associations; the Governor's Task Force on Senior Citizen Activity Centers; the Golden Age Card Task Force; and the Task Force on Elderly Abuse and Neglect. She was a member of the International Gerontological Society and the Arc of Montgomery County.

Schweinhaut's career as a state senator was interrupted when she ran unsuccessfully for Congress in 1962. She returned to the senate in 1967, where she served until 1991. She was defeated for reelection to the state senate in the 1990 Democratic primary by then-Delegate Patricia Sher, who criticized her opposition to abortion.

Personal life

She married Henry Schweinhaut, a lawyer, in 1928, and had two daughters. Her husband went on to become a federal judge. The family lived in Washington, D.C., until 1941, when they moved to Chevy Chase, Maryland. They moved to Kensington, Maryland, in 1958.

Schweinhaut died of heart failure at her home in Kensington on March 16, 1997. She was buried at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Awards and memorials

Honorary Doctor of Laws degree, St. Joseph's College (Maryland), 1971 Certificate of Merit, National Council of Senior Citizens Outstanding Legislator, Knights of Columbus Citation of Merit, Veterans of Foreign Wars Outstanding Service, Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce The Montgomery County Sentinel Legislator of the Year Award, 1983 Inducted into the Maryland Women's Hall of Fame, 1992

The Margaret Schweinhaut Senior Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, was named in her honor.